Starting in the exploding mountains of the spirit realm and concluding with a spectacular musical set piece – what else but Kung Fu Fighting? This movie is the third installment in the remarkably enjoyable Kung Fu Panda series, stepping up with a new array of characters, including J.K Simmons (who also portrayed Terence Fletcher and J.Jonah Jameson) as the blade-swinging yak spirit Kai, Jack Black as Po and Dustin Hoffman returning as his undersized guru Master Shifu. 

Po, now having earned the title of Dragon Warrior, is being pushed into a teacher role by Master Shifu, who wishes to quit his teaching post and sit in a cave for thirty years in order to master the mystical forces of chi. Po, obviously, makes a complete hash of these new obligations in a humorous sequence.

Be that as it may, Kung Fu Panda sparkles in its more personal moments - incidentally when Po finds his biological father, Li played by Bryan Cranston (popular for his roles in  the Malcolm In The Middle and Breaking Bad) and goes on a journey to discover the inner panda in him, yet at the same time discovers space in his life for his adoptive father, Mr Ping, a noodle-selling goose. Li takes Po to a hidden panda colony to hide out and regroup, and Mr Ping – Po’s adoptive goose father, voiced again by James Hong – insists on coming along. There’s a conflict between Po’s two father figures. 

This is quite interesting as unconventional families feel like this is an imperative topic for youngsters in the present day world, and who'd have imagined that Kung Fu Panda 3 would be the film to suggest it?

Moving on to Kai, who’s an ancient villain a master of the chi arts that none of the good guys can match. With just the right blend of scary and silly for a kids’ film, and the grim ability to capture individuals into green emerald stones balanced by his star-Lord mocking inconvenience at the way that no one appears to recollect who he is, he is a treat. 

Kate Hudson puts in a cameo as a ribbon-dancing panda temptress as well! 

This is an outwardly luxurious children's film that will likewise enchant grown-ups.

Along the route to the inevitable final confrontation with Kai, Po finds out about his legacy and grows a considerable measure as a man. Li and Mr Ping both take away some essential lessons as well. In any case, this stellar character material comes at an expense; Kung Fu Panda 3 doesn't exactly pack in the same number of laughs as its predecessors.

There's a critical dumpling choke for the more seasoned viewers, some not too bad physical amusingness, and a Rebel Wilson-alike female lighthearted element character played by Kate Hudson as a ribbon-dancing panda temptress. 
This is an outwardly luxurious children's film that will likewise enchant grown-ups, however the laughs tragically don't come as thick and quick as they did in parts 1 and 2 of the series.

Nevertheless, there are all that could possibly be needed to outweigh this and make Kung Fu Panda 3 a tremendous family treat. 

There are some essential messages about parenthood lying underneath an engaging mission to bring down a powerful villain. The battles are fun without overpowering everything else, and the expansion of chi to the arrangement brings a radical new visual toy box for the illustrators and chiefs to play with. 

And as ever, there are moments when the film breaks from 3D animation to take a stab at something other than what's expected on a 2D plane. This level of imagination is something that the franchise has always embraced, and it’s still very welcome. 

So, while Kung Fu Panda 3 could be funnier, it has a lot in place of those big belly laughs.

3/5 Stars

Review by Zeeshan Akram Jabeer
Pictures by Waruna Wanniarachchi 

Check photos of E FM premiere of Kung Fu Panda 3 here
 

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We spoke to a few others who’ve watched the movie and this is what they had to say…

Rushdi Sattar - It was a great movie all on its own. But I liked Kung Fu Panda 2 better; every movie has become a bit generic now anyways.

Ziya Hussain - I expected it to be really good as it has been a while after the 2nd movie. And it did live up to my expectations.

Abilan Linganathan - It was a good follow-up to Kung Fu Panda 2. Although predictable at certain times, I found the movie quite entertaining and funny. I loved how all the untold back stories from the first two films tied up with this one, completing the tale of the Dragon Warrior.

Muqsidh Riza - Emotionally and dramatically, I think the movie was good and worth to watch in 3D but still expected more.

Shannen Fernando - Well the film is absolutely good. The blend of animation and comedy were brought out well.